Improvement in holdbacks



UNITED 4STATES PATENT OFFICE.,

JACOB B. GOLDSMITH, OF ROOKPORT, MASSACHUSETTS.

IMPROVEMENT 1N HoLDBAcKs.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 158.370, date-d January5, 1875; application led July 16, 1874.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, J Aeon B. GoLDsMITH, of Rockport, in the county ofEssex and State ot' Massachusetts, have invented an Improved HoldbackIron for Carriage Shafts, and I do hereby declare that the following,taken in connection with the drawings which accompany and form part ofthis specication, is a description of my invention sufficient to enablethose skilled in the art to practice it.

The invention relates to holdback irons or hooks for carriage-shafts;and consists in the special construction hereinafter particularlydescribed.

The drawing represents a shaft-iron embodying the invention.

Figures l and 2 show the construction in side and sectional elevation.Fig. 3 shows the construction in plan.

c denotes the main plate or bar, having at its front end a hole, b,through which passes a screw that enters the shaft, and at its rear enda vertical screw-shank, c, that passes through the shaft, and ispermanently secured to the shaft by a suitable uut on the shank underthe shaft. The bar is slotted, as seen at d, and in said slot is astrong horizontal spring, e, supported at its opposite ends on shouldersf. Over the screw-shank is an arm, g, that extends up from the bar, andthen bends over into horizontal position, as seen in the drawing. Thebar a is made with vertical ears h, in which are supported gudgeonplust', extending from a lever, 7c, having rightangular arms lm. The arm lhas, at its top,

an eye, n, that swings over the point of the stationary arm g. TheVlever 7c is held in normal position by the spring e and the pressureagainst it of a block-rubber spring, o. When the strap is to be insertedthe arm Z is thrown down to the shaft. Then, by drawing the strapagainst the arm m, it is left inclosed between the arm g and the arm l.The spring holds the lever with sutlicient firmness in position to keepthe holdback-strap from slipping out, but, if the traces break, theholdback-strap will bear against the lever-arm l, freeing the horse fromthe carriage. Extend ing back from the stationary arm g is a brace, p,having a hole, q, through which a screw passes into the shaft. By thebrace p, the screws passing through the holes p q, and thescrew-threaded shank-piece secured by the nut, the holdback-iron issecurely fastened in position, and is also made very enduring in its ownconstruction.

I claim- The holdbaek-iron formed of the bar a., having the screw-shankc, arm g, brace p, and having pivoted to the bar a the lever k, providedwith an eye, u, in one of its arms, all combined substantially as shownand described. i

J. B. GOLDSMITH.

